


Lama Bada Yatathana (When She Begins to Sway)

by erenbaeger



Series: Ereri Week 2k15 [1]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Historical, Belly Dancing, Day 1: Pining, M/M, Mutual Pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-31
Updated: 2015-05-31
Packaged: 2018-04-02 05:56:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,198
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4048741
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/erenbaeger/pseuds/erenbaeger
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Levi was part of the French excursion that set out to explore the world and was part of the reason why the world was never the same anymore. For Levi though, the world changed for a whole different reason and that reason had the brightest of eyes he'd ever seen.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lama Bada Yatathana (When She Begins to Sway)

**Author's Note:**

> Okay so I've had this idea for ages about a belly dancing/Turkish Eren and French Levi who met somewhere in Egypt during the Ottoman era and it somehow turned into this. I tried to keep it as historically accurate but let's face it homosexuality and male belly dancing was not as wildly accepted here in Egypt as it was in Constantinople/Ottoman Empire in general. Anyways I hope you enjoy and if you want to listen to the song that plays in the beginning (and where the title comes from) to better imagine it, click [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=411_lLn__lQ)

The first time Levi ever saw his face, he was mesmerized. He didn’t usually frequent places like this out of his own volition but when Hanji had insisted that first time, very loudly, that he needed to unwind and that they knew the perfect place to do so, he didn't resist.

He didn’t know or care if it was the setting, the clothes or the fact that he was in desperate need of some time off after the last excursion but from the very first flick of a wrist his attention was captured.

The _oud_ along with the _tabla_ started off soft to accommodate the gentleness of the boy’s movements, starting out by the edge of the stage and working his way to the center smiling and gently luring the patrons with a hooded gaze. He was tan, tall and lean with shoulder length hair and bangs covering his forehead but barely touching his eyes. And those eyes, those eyes were the brightest mixture of blue and green he’d ever seen.

If it weren’t for his attire though, he could have easily mistaken him for a beautiful woman because that’s indeed what he was, beautiful. His face was clad in jewels all over, from his earrings was a chain connected to the one in his nose. He was also wearing a huge coin necklace that went beyond his sternum on his bare chest. His arms were covered in several bangles that were placed strategically from each other. Around his waist was a similar piece of jewelry as his necklace, the coins formed triangles over the sides of his hips while his center was covered with a huge pendant. If this was woman’s belly dance attire it would probably be holding together the cloth but for him, it only seemed to emphasize the gentle sway of his hip. Underneath it was a pair of slightly transparent purple harem pants that were threaded with gold all over making him shine with each movement he took.

By the time Levi started paying attention again to the actual dance rather than the dancer, the singer in the back on the _oud_ had begun to sing and the dancer started moving around the stage. He was swaying his hips to the beat and making eye contact with the patrons surrounding the dance floor and giving away small smiles whenever he made eye contact with one. He started bending his back backwards while flicking his wrists gracefully on top of him complimenting the singers’ words. Levi was so entranced he even softly gasped when the dancer was suddenly splayed over the floor still moving rhythmically and gracefully. He looked simply magical to Levi and he couldn't be gladder that he took part in this excursion, regardless of how draining it is, if it meant being exposed to this type of beauty.

He must have still been very out of it because all of a sudden the music stopped and the dancer was bowing to his standing audience. What he didn't expect was the heavy gaze that was directed towards him and the smirk accompanying it that lead Levi to realize that maybe, he wasn't being as subtle with his staring as he thought he'd been. The dancer bowed down with grace that was enviable one last time as the clapping died down and left the stage.

"So what do you think?" Hanji asked all of a sudden startling Levi.

"Not bad" Levi commented and before Hanji was able to add another word he added, "Certainly better than I expected such a thing would be, let alone with a male dancer as well"

"I knew this might grab your interest" they pretty much gloated, "I think the dancers come out to the floor after their performances. At least that's what I read in the books I got from travelers I've ran into."

Levi hummed in response and ignored Hanji as they continued to ramble on about the origins of belly dancing and how it was only recently that male dancers started gaining acceptance and more recognition. The night went on and Levi was lost to his thoughts of  the green-eyed beauty that was now making his way from table to table, entertaining guests with eyes shining bright and a smile lighting up his face, and his glass that seemed to fill itself all through the night.

It became a sort of routine for the upcoming weeks where every week on the same day Levi would go to the _malha_ with the excuse of needing to unwind. Sometimes he was accompanied by Hanji and Mike but most of the time he went alone. He'd sit there, completely silent with a glass in his hand and watching the boy with mesmerized eyes and a certain inexplicable ache in his chest.

Two months later found him in the _malha_ as had become a routine, he'd watched the boy with the same ache that seemed to be present whenever he visited. The boy seemed to be focusing on Levi more than usual, his gaze never leaving him and Levi couldn't bring himself to look away and just let himself be absolutely captivated by those bright eyes, plump lips and lithe body that seemed to move in a newly found sensuality that Levi never noticed before.

He was still dressed in his gold-lined green harem pants when he came out as usual after his performance but most of the jewelry he had been wearing was removed except for the ones on his face. He looked just as captivating as he was on the dance floor and now his chest was on full display for Levi to admire.

Catching Levi's stare again, the dancer made a straight beeline to their table with a look of determination and unbelievable passion that made his eyes look like they were on fire.

" _Merhaba_ " the boy said and with a voice like that Levi had to wonder why this boy was just dancing and singing as well. Levi simply nodded in response. " _Benim adim Eren, seninki ne?_ "

Ah so he was Turkish, well that explained a lot.

"I'm sorry, I don't really speak Turkish" Levi replied and the boy, whose name he caught was Eren only smiled and proceeded to reply in perfect French.

"Oh a French man, we don't get those a lot here" he proceeded to lean in, his eyes sparkling in the dim lighting like emeralds. "How about we go somewhere more private?"

Startled by the forward proposition, Levi’s eyes widened slightly and it took him a second before he schooled his face back into its normal nonchalant expression then looked back into those mesmerizing eyes.

"Sure, I don't see why we shouldn't" he replied swiftly while getting up.

He didn't dare look back at the table where Hanji, Moblit and Mike were all sitting. The mental image of the shit-eating grin the 3 of them were probably sporting was enough to make him question his decision of coming to this place to begin with. But looking at the back of this boy who was leading him into what seemed to be the dancers’ private quarters; he decided it was definitely worth the amount of ridicule he would receive when he saw them later on.

Eren was waiting for him by curtains from which he came when he entered the seating hall and was holding it open waiting for Levi to reach him. The area at the back was just as visually stunning as the rest of the place but with a lot more lighting. There was an area to his left with cushions against the walls for sitting that seemed to serve the performers as a waiting area for either before or after their performances. There were a couple of dancers lounging in a very relaxed manner and both girls were not at all startled by Levi’s presence so he guessed this was a normal occurrence for patrons to go back stage.

He was then led through a beaded curtain and into a hallway with doors on either side. Eren was slowing down and gave one look over his shoulder and Levi’s heart skipped a beat, his eyes were full of mischief and something akin to a promise of what’s to come, and just like that he reached for his hand and guided him to the next door on their right. He pushed it open dragging Levi inside, leading him to the futon that was just to his left.

Levi sat down and began taking in the room. Right in front of him was a changing screen with beautiful intricate floral designs and to his left was what he assumed to be Eren’s mirror and dresser. At that moment Eren emerged from behind the screen holding a bottle and two small glasses.

“Can I interest you in a drink?” He says while looking directly at Levi and he could swear to whatever god you want, these eyes would be his undoing.

“S-sure” The words come out of Levi’s mouth with an unusual uncertainty and he cannot believe in that moment how much this boy seems to be affecting him.

Eren smiles at his stutter and looks down to pour them a drink. After he’s done, he hands Levi his glass and then sits down on the other side of the futon.

“So you’re part of the French Campaign, are you not?” He inquires with an unidentifiable light in his eyes but doesn’t give him the chance to answer. “I’ve always wanted to travel since I was a little kid.”

“Well you’d be sorely disappointed if you were in my shoes.” Levi said with a sigh, a hand moving to rub his face tiredly. “You’d be travelling from place to place on a short notice and you wouldn’t even get to enjoy them before you have to leave for someplace else”

“I’d still take it over staying in one place” He says earnestly and when Levi looks back into his eyes, he’s surprised with the amount of innocence and childish wonder he sees.

“How old are you?” He blurts before he could stop himself and Eren just laughs and it’s magical.

“I’m 22” And then proceeded to laugh even more when he caught the look on Levi's face. "You thought I was younger, didn't you?" He managed to get out between laughs.

"I'm not going to deny it, I did." He says and then takes a sip of his drink and trying to figure out why he was suddenly feeling so nervous. “So is this why you’re so far away from home?”

“It might have started like that.” Eren paused looking down at the glass in his hand. “I wanted to travel, experience the world and meet new people—” He looked back up, straight into Levi’s eyes. “But I kind of fell in love with this place.” He grinned sheepishly like a kid caught stealing.

“I can understand it does have its own appeal.” He started. “But why stay here when there’s the whole world to explore?”

Eren just shrugged in response leaning back against the futon and it took all of Levi’s self-control to not follow every flex of muscle with his eyes. When Levi finally looked back at his face, the smirk that was waiting for him just showed how obvious he’d been yet again. The look in Eren’s eyes however was startling; his eyes weren’t smiling or even mischievous as he’d come to get used to in the short amount of time they’ve shared. Instead he was looking at Levi with a strange longing that he was pretty sure he would never be able to grasp the depth of.

“I can understand if you’d rather not—” He’d started but was quickly cut off.

“I came here to find my sister.” Eren says while focusing on a spot above Levi’s head then takes a deep breath and his eyes find Levi’s again. “She was captured and sold as part of some noble’s harem and from what information I managed to get a hold of, she was sent here.”

Levi was at a loss for words. He was well aware of the slave trade that was prominent in the Ottoman Empire and he knew he wasn’t in the place to do anything about it but the look in Eren’s eyes made him want to go out of his way and help him in any way he can or at least hold him in his arms and whisper everything’s going to be okay instead he reached out and placed a tentative hand on the boy’s knee before he could register what he’d done.

Eren’s eyes flickered with emotion as if with that simple gesture he understood everything that went through Levi’s head. He couldn’t understand how someone he’d just met had managed to read him so easily when his closest companions still have trouble doing so. He was even more surprised by what Eren said next.

“I didn’t ask you back here to seek your help, you know.” He started with a little smirk forming on those plump lips. “I know where my sister is and she’s happy and safe and although I cannot see her as much as I’d like to, I decided to stay to be close to her.”

There was a hint of melancholy in his voice and Levi knew that even if he didn’t regret his decision to stay, he still yearned for the joy of experiencing the unknown. He looked at him and saw a boy full of passion and determination and a fire that would devour cities and destroy everything in its way rather than be tamed and Levi knew better than to question his decision to stay.

"So why _did_ you ask me back here?" Levi changed the subject, eager to find out the purpose behind the boy's actions.

"You intrigued me" Came the instant reply. Before Levi could question him, Eren continued. "From the moment I stepped on the dance floor that first time two months ago, I felt your eyes on me. It wasn't the lustful or horrified gaze I was used to but it was a look of pure fascination—" He cut himself off, suddenly finding the glass in his hands too interesting.

"Well go on then, don't stop now" Levi nudged him, only now noticing how much closer they were all of a sudden.

"Well I—"He started then paused again to look back at Levi, eyes shining with emotion all bare for Levi to see. "I kind of, have never been looked at like that before" He ended with a whisper.

Levi's eyes widened at that confession and he had an overwhelming urge to hold that boy and tell him he was worthy, of what exactly he didn’t know, that other people didn’t matter because in reality this boy was leagues above them. This boy who sacrificed his dreams for his sister and started working as a belly dancer instead of traveling the world like he wanted deserved all the world could give and not the sneers, glares and lustful glances he received on a daily basis.

"Come with me." Eren's eyes widened and only then did Levi notice that he had just spoken his thoughts out loud.

"Come travel with me." Levi repeated, reaching out to catch the stray tear that was making its way down Eren's check with his thumb and unconsciously moving closer to the boy.

Eren's hand came to intertwine with his own over his cheek and turned to place an open-mouthed kiss on the palm of Levi's hand slowly, lingering a bit before looking back again at Levi. This time the emotions behind Eren's eyes left him breathless, they were calling for him, enticing and inviting him to make his move already and the slight nod of Eren's head was all Levi needed before he closed what little space was left between them and tenderly covered the boy's lips with his own.

Levi drew in a deep breath the moment their lips touched. Eren's lips were as soft as he'd imagined and felt tantalizing underneath his own, what started out as chaste and gentle quickly spiraled into a frenzy of passion and lip biting. Eren's tongue brushed against Levi's lips, eagerly pushing its way inside Levi's mouth the moment he allowed it inside. Levi sucked on it fiercely, swallowing Eren's choked moan before releasing it and resting their foreheads together to take a much needed breath.

"You have no idea how long I've been wanting to do this." Eren was the first to break the silence, voicing Levi's exact thoughts.

"Same here, kid." Levi chuckled, brushing his thumb against the cheek he was still cradling in his hand.

He was starting to get lost in Eren's eyes all over again when Eren leaned forward again and pressed a soft chaste kiss against his lips before he asked quietly, "Did you mean it?"

It took Levi a few seconds to understand what Eren was asking of him before a "Yes" left him in a rush. Eren smiled, eyes crinkling at the sides and then nodded eagerly.

"Yes, I want to come with you. Where are you going and when are you leaving?" His eyes were sparkling and lit with fire in his excitement.

"In two weeks." Levi said, smiling at the bouncing energy ball the boy turned into. Chest aching at the sight of the innocence and wonder the boy was exhibiting. "We're going to make our way to Syria, so it's going to be quite the trip if you're up to it."

"If I'm up to it? Are you kidding me? That's just what I've been waiting for my whole life." Eren just about screamed, laughing freely and relishing in the feeling of Levi's hands on his own.

"Well you better be ready in two weeks then." Levi teased, highly amused at the boy's antics and quite possibly falling rapidly for the boy.

"I will be." Eren's grin turned into a soft smile, hand moving to brush Levi's hair out of his face and tucking it behind his ear and leaning in and whispering, "As long as I'm with you, I'll be ready for anything."

Levi couldn't find the right words so he just pulled Eren towards him and slotted their lips together again, kissing him intensely, trying to convey all of the emotions going through him through the connection of their lips and swallowing all the moans leaving Eren and mixing them with his own. He moved away from the boy's lips but only slightly and whispered, "I have no idea what is going on or how it is that I feel the way I do; but please never leave my side." against his lips before leaning in for another kiss.

A few hours later found Levi at the house he was staying in with the rest of his team, Hanji waiting for him in front of the door instantly assaulting him with questions and demanding answers to which Levi could only shake his head and answer them with a small smile before telling them all about what had happened a few hours earlier.

**Author's Note:**

> I kind of tried a new writing style for this, so please do tell what you think. Come talk to me on [tumblr](http://www.erenbaegerr.tumblr.com) , I'm nervous af!!!!!!


End file.
